An increase in membership will boost the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), said an annual report published by leading Chinese think tanks on Eurasian studies on Tuesday as the SCO is expected to embrace new members during upcoming Tashkent summit.

Chinese President Xi Jinping kicked off his state visit to Uzbekistan on Tuesday. During his stay in the Central Asian country, he and other heads from SCO countries are expected to take India and Pakistan to the next stage in a process of attaining full membership at the 16th meeting of the Council of Heads of State of SCO.

Hailing the coming decade as a key time for both global system and the SCO’s development, the annual report on the organization’s development said that the membership increase will lift the organization to a new stage.

But it also urged the organization to be prudent. The process should not pursue quick successes, but achieve its ultimate goal step by step by following strict procedures, the report stressed. According to the report, the downward pressure on the global economy is increasing, and trade negotiations among the WTO members are deadlocked. Therefore it is necessary and realistic for SCO members to intensify economic ties, beginning with the construction of a free trade zone.

It called on all SCO members to reinforce security cooperation and safeguard regional security and stability amid the new challenges and regional security threats.

“As the international structure undergoes deep adjustments, turmoil emerges in some regions and global terrorism threats continue to rise,” said the report.

China, as the second largest economy and largest exporter in the world, which is also the founder of SCO, should play a bigger role in the organization, the report said.

The SCO currently has six member states – China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, with Belarus, Afghanistan, India, Iran, Mongolia and Pakistan as observers, and Turkey, Sri Lanka, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia and Nepal as dialogue partners.

The report was jointly contributed by Institute of Eastern European, Russian & Central Asian Studies and SCO Research Center affiliated to Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Development Research Center of the State Council, as well as the Social Sciences Academic Press.